Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange wave and shout in frantic trading in this Oct. 19, 1987 file photo, as the Dow Jones Industrial average plunged more than 500 points for the biggest... (Associated Press)

(Newser)
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Wall Street observed the 20th anniversary of Black Monday with an absolute bloodbath today as the Dow fell a whopping 366.94 points to close at 13,522.02. Wachovia, Caterpillar, and Honeywell led a host of disappointing earnings reports, driving every major index down over 2.5%. The S&P 500 dropped 39.45 to 1,500.63, and the Nasdaq closed at 2,725.16, off 74.15.

Wachovia’s earning fell on a record $1.6 billion in writedowns for bad loans and mortgage-backed securities, while Caterpillar slashed 2007 projections, citing “extreme weakness” in US markets. With oil skyrocketing and options expiring, conditions were ripe for the worst day in months. “We were set for a pullback today,” one analyst told Bloomberg, “but clearly the news has been no help.”